Draper, Heather and Sorell, Tom (2017) Ethical values and social care robots for older people : an international qualitative study. Ethics and Information Technology, 19 (1). pp. 49-68. doi:10.1007/s10676-016-9413-1 ISSN 1388-1957.

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Abstract

Values such as respect for autonomy, safety, enablement, independence, privacy and social connectedness should be reflected in the design of social robots. The same values should affect the process by which robots are introduced into the homes of old people to support independent living. These values may, however, be in tension. We explored what potential users thought about these values, and how the tensions between them could be resolved. With the help of partners in the ACCOMPANY project, 21 focus groups (123 participants) were convened in France, the Netherlands and the UK. These groups consisted of: (i) older people, (ii) informal carers and (iii) formal carers of older people. The participants were asked to discuss scenarios in which there is a conflict between older people and others over how a robot should be used, these conflicts reflecting tensions between values. Participants favoured compromise, persuasion and negotiation as a means of reaching agreement. Roles and related role-norms for the robot were thought relevant to resolving tensions, as were hypothetical agreements between users and robot-providers before the robot is introduced into the home. Participants' understanding of each of the values – autonomy, safety, enablement, independence, privacy and social connectedness – is reported. Participants tended to agree that autonomy often has priority over the other values, with the exception in certain cases of safety. The second part of the paper discusses how the values could be incorporated into the design of social robots and operationalised in line with the views expressed by the participants.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HV Social pathology. Social and public welfare T Technology > TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery
Divisions:	Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Medicine > Warwick Medical School > Health Sciences Faculty of Social Sciences > Politics and International Studies Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Medicine > Warwick Medical School > Health Sciences > Social Science & Systems in Health (SSSH)
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Older people -- Home care -- Technological innovations, Robots
Journal or Publication Title:	Ethics and Information Technology
Publisher:	Springer Netherlands
ISSN:	1388-1957
Official Date:	March 2017
Dates:	Date Event March 2017 Published 8 December 2016 Available 21 November 2016 Accepted
Volume:	19
Number:	1
Page Range:	pp. 49-68
DOI:	10.1007/s10676-016-9413-1
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Publication Status:	Published
Access rights to Published version:	Open Access (Creative Commons)
Date of first compliant deposit:	23 November 2016
Date of first compliant Open Access:	24 November 2016
Funder:	European Commission (EC)
Grant number:	Grant Agreement No.: 287624.
Related URLs:	Publisher

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